Microsoft has raised the price of its Xbox consoles worldwide due to increasing costs for memory and storage chips. The premium Series X console now costs £670, up from £500, while the baseline Xbox Series S console costs £430, a 43% increase from £300. The company cites rising demand for memory chips used in artificial intelligence as one reason for the price hike, which has also affected rival Sony and other tech firms. Microsoft had previously hoped to avoid another price increase but ultimately raised prices globally, including in the US and EU, despite criticism of passing costs onto consumers.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-21,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
- Published
Microsoft has increased the price of Xbox consoles worldwide, citing rising memory and storage chip costs.
asserted
Microsoft → publish → costs
Its premium Series X console with a disc drive will now cost £670, when it previously retailed for £500.
asserted
it → cost → 500
Meanwhile a baseline Xbox Series S console now costs £430 - a roughly 43% increase on its previous £300 price tag.
asserted
console → cost → tag
It is among a host of tech firms to have told consumers that spiralling component costs mean they must charge more, with rival Sony hiking PlayStation 5 prices by £90 in March.
asserted
Sony → tell → March
Microsoft said in June it had "hoped another price increase would not be necessary", but blamed the rising cost of console storage and memory for needing to raise prices on consumers.
asserted
increase → say → consumers
In the US, its basic consoles rose by $100 to $499, and the cost of a console with more memory increased by $150 to $749.
asserted
cost → rise → 749
Similar increases have been revealed in the EU as well - where a Series S console with more storage will cost roughly €200 more than it did before.
asserted
it → reveal → storage
As well as Sony increasing PlayStation prices, Steam Machine maker Valve launched its PC-console hybrid at a much higher cost than expected.
asserted
Valve → increase → cost
Both likewise pointed to mounting costs for the hardware and storage components needed to power their devices.
asserted
Both → point → devices
Once a cheap part used to provide computers and a range of gadgets with short-term memory, random-access memory (RAM) has shot up in price due, in part, to demand from AI firms.
asserted
memory → use → firms
Prices for graphics cards, a key component of consoles and gaming PCs, have also gone up because of their use in generating AI content.
But large tech firms have faced criticism for passing such costs to consumers - particularly when it can mean paying eye-watering amounts for products released years ago.
asserted
it → go → products
X user @BlackPanthaa called the new Xbox Series S price, external "absolutely disgusting", while a Reddit user said, external it was "highway robbery for a console released 6 years ago".
asserted
it → call → console
Some fear console prices - which have essentially been raised across the board in recent months - could go higher still.
uncertain
which → fear → months
"This ain't even the ceiling," wrote, external Windows Central editor Jez Corden on X of Xbox's price increases.
asserted
Corden → be → increases
Amazon's gaming boss recently told the BBC increasing hardware costs may lead more people to ditch consoles and stream games instead.
uncertain
people → tell → games
Xbox has also seen its own struggles lately, with owner Microsoft recently revealing revenues had dipped across its gaming division, external.
asserted
revenues → see → division
In July, it initiated what executives called "the most significant restructure in Xbox history" with approximately 3,200 reductions across its workforce.
asserted
executives → initiate → workforce
- Published
Microsoft has increased the price of Xbox consoles worldwide, citing rising memory and storage chip costs.
asserted
Microsoft → publish → costs
Its premium Series X console with a disc drive will now cost £670, when it previously retailed for £500.
asserted
it → cost → 500
Meanwhile a baseline Xbox Series S console now costs £430 - a roughly 43% increase on its previous £300 price tag.
asserted
console → cost → tag
It is among a host of tech firms to have told consumers that spiralling component costs mean they must charge more, with rival Sony hiking PlayStation 5 prices by £90 in March.
asserted
Sony → tell → March
Microsoft said in June it had "hoped another price increase would not be necessary", but blamed the rising cost of console storage and memory for needing to raise prices on consumers.
asserted
increase → say → consumers
In the US, its basic consoles rose by $100 to $499, and the cost of a console with more memory increased by $150 to $749.
asserted
cost → rise → 749
Similar increases have been revealed in the EU as well - where a Series S console with more storage will cost roughly €200 more than it did before.
asserted
it → reveal → storage
As well as Sony increasing PlayStation prices, Steam Machine maker Valve launched its PC-console hybrid at a much higher cost than expected.
asserted
Valve → increase → cost
Both likewise pointed to mounting costs for the hardware and storage components needed to power their devices.
asserted
Both → point → devices
Once a cheap part used to provide computers and a range of gadgets with short-term memory, random-access memory (RAM) has shot up in price due, in part, to demand from AI firms.
asserted
memory → use → firms
Prices for graphics cards, a key component of consoles and gaming PCs, have also gone up because of their use in generating AI content.
But large tech firms have faced criticism for passing such costs to consumers - particularly when it can mean paying eye-watering amounts for products released years ago.
asserted
it → go → products
X user @BlackPanthaa called the new Xbox Series S price, external "absolutely disgusting", while a Reddit user said, external it was "highway robbery for a console released 6 years ago".
asserted
it → call → console
Some fear console prices - which have essentially been raised across the board in recent months - could go higher still.
uncertain
which → fear → months
"This ain't even the ceiling," wrote, external Windows Central editor Jez Corden on X of Xbox's price increases.
asserted
Corden → be → increases
Amazon's gaming boss recently told the BBC increasing hardware costs may lead more people to ditch consoles and stream games instead.
uncertain
people → tell → games
Xbox has also seen its own struggles lately, with owner Microsoft recently revealing revenues had dipped across its gaming division, external.
asserted
revenues → see → division
In July, it initiated what executives called "the most significant restructure in Xbox history" with approximately 3,200 reductions across its workforce.
asserted
executives → initiate → workforce
